What is appropriate Disney etiquette? Ms. Emily Post Advocates welcome .

[Laurajean1014]

Relax............WDW has been around for over 30 years and will continue to be here, so you can return to complete your mission.

 

[disneyfreakjackie]

3. The lines do not move faster simply because you stand as close as humanly possible to the person in front of you, respect personal space.

YES!!! Get AWAY from me!!

 

[Nanajo1]

No flames here!! I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU!!! But . . . I think the people in the wheelchairs should wait in line like everyone else. When their turn comes to get on the bus, they should get on first, but shouldn't be allowed to CUT in front of others!!! We watched a women try and try to ride her scooter into the bus, but couldn't get it straight enough to ride up the ramp. Well what does she do?? She gets off and pushes the scooter up the ramp!!! I was livid!!!

I don't know the circumstances of the women who pushed the ECV so I won't comment on that but it is very nerve racking to load an ECV on the bus. It is easier to manuever when the bus is not crowded. I have had seated people refuse to move their feet so I could better and more quickly position my ECV. I really think one man was hoping a would bump him, he was so adamant about not moving his feet a couple of inches. If I had to dodge the oversize strollers it would be even more difficult not to mention children eagerly waiting to get to their destination. I don't enjoy using a ECV but for safety's sake it makes sense to board the ECV on a less crowded bus.
Remember I have to wait until everyone exits the bus before I do!

 

[pampam]

Good point nanajo 1. Wheel chairs may be first on, but they are always last off. Also, getting around with a wheelchair is more time consuming than most people realize. Usually, people without wc's see and do more than people with wh's. There are always exceptions to that of course.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Usually, people without wc's see and do more than people with wh's. There are always exceptions to that of course.

Um, huh???

 

[Jrsy Boy]

I have a son DS4 who coughs as if he is trying to expell an entire organ system. He has always been like this so I am very used to it but I DREAD him getting a tickle in his throat in a public place! He sounds like he has whooping cough or bronchitis.

I bet you never have a problem getting a seat on the bus, though.

 

[SueM in MN]

Sue, just curious and you don't have to answer. How old is your daughter? The reason I ask is if my mother had said that to someone after I turned, I dunno, 12 or so, I would have been pretty embarrassed. I can't stand up for myself and don't need her to speak for. Not flaming, just curious.

My DD is 20, and one of the reasons I don't say anything is that I don't really want to draw more attention to the situation. My DD can't talk (although she does understand people quite well). When people do/say things she doesn't like, she usually ignores them.

No flames here!! I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU!!! But . . . I think the people in the wheelchairs should wait in line like everyone else. When their turn comes to get on the bus, they should get on first, but shouldn't be allowed to CUT in front of others!!! We watched a women try and try to ride her scooter into the bus, but couldn't get it straight enough to ride up the ramp. Well what does she do?? She gets off and pushes the scooter up the ramp!!! I was livid!!!

I don't understand, how can people with wheelchairs wait in line with everyone else and get on first when their turn comes?
If they get to the front of the line after waiting in line, chances are good that the bus will have too many people on it for them to get on easily because of all the people who were already on the bus (even if there was room for lots more passengers.) And, since they have to get on at the back, boarding would need to be interupted at the front door while they went to the back door, the driver put down the lift/ramp and loaded the wheelchair onto the bus. After that was done, then people could start loading at the front again.
The reason that the Disney buses board people with wheelchairs and ecvs first is that it's more efficient to do it that way. It's easier and faster to load a wheelchair or ecv onto the bus the less people there are on the bus.
And, the woman who pushed the ecv up the ramp should probably have practiced backing up before venturing out on the ecv, but it's not easy to back those things (especially up an incline), so since she couldn't back it on, she did what she could to get it on the bus (probably as quickly as possible). Why that would make anyone livid is not something I can understand (although I can understand why the woman having to push the ecv up the ramp might have been a little ticked off).

 

[LuluLovesDisney]

I don't understand, how can people with wheelchairs wait in line with everyone else and get on first when their turn comes?
If they get to the front of the line after waiting in line, chances are good that the bus will have too many people on it for them to get on easily because of all the people who were already on the bus (even if there was room for lots more passengers.)

I think what they meant was that if there is a long line that would require a person w/o a wc to wait for 2 or 3 buses, then a person with a wc should still have to wait 2 or 3 buses as opposed to being loaded on the next available bus in front of people who have *already* waited for 2 or 3 buses to get a seat. Wheelchairs for each bus would still be loaded first.


Personally, here's what I do if I am in the parks at the end of the day when bus lines will be crowded. I get a drink and rest on a bench, or explore a shop. I prolong my exit of the park as long as humanly possible so that lines will have died down.

I *know* that they send buses until the "all clear" has been given. They will *not*leave me stranded in the park, and the fight for the buses is the ugliest part of the day to me.

It's understandable- almost everyone has been pushing their physical limits- people want to see and do as much as possible and they keep going so by the end of the day everyone seems to be lacking energy and patience. They all want to sit down and rest or get a little swim in to cool down. People are cutthroat to get on the next bus and cut off wheelchairs, strollers, etc. People do not want someone to get "their" seat, etc. Anytime you have this many people that have been pushed to their limits already fighting for something you will have problems with inconsideration.

I hate to end my day on a sour note, so I just wait to get there. Worst case scenario, they have a Disney Security van take me to my resort- another benefit of staying on Disney property.

 

[Laurajean1014]

Always smile and say thank you when you are running someone over with your cart or stroller.

 

[SueM in MN]

I think what they meant was that if there is a long line that would require a person w/o a wc to wait for 2 or 3 buses, then a person with a wc should still have to wait 2 or 3 buses as opposed to being loaded on the next available bus in front of people who have *already* waited for 2 or 3 buses to get a seat. Wheelchairs for each bus would still be loaded first.
......I hate to end my day on a sour note, so I just wait to get there. Worst case scenario, they have a Disney Security van take me to my resort- another benefit of staying on Disney property.

We also are in no hurry to get to the bus. We trust that they won't strand us at the park and that it will be much more relaxed and less cut-throat if we wait and leave the park a bit after closing.

The "wait for 2 or 3 buses" part gets difficult to decide. How many people fit on one bus and who will count it out?
And, once the person with a wheelchair gets to the front of the line, if it's too full to manouver a wheelchair on to that bus, to be fair, the people waiting behind the person with a wheelchair should not be allowed to board, even if there are seats left.
Also, it doesn't happen often, but there have been times when we could not board a bus because it was one of the few without a lift or the lift did not work. Or (as has happened to us at DD), we wanted to board at the Marketplace area, but the bus was too full of people who planned to get off closer to Pleasure Island to let us on. There was plenty of room though for people who would stand and even a scattered seat or two. To be fair (not letting anyone cut in front of us), that bus should be sent away without anyone boarding it since we were at the front of the line and could not board it. That would be a ridiculous waste of resources though, so we would not expect it.
And, as I posted on a page back, sometimes we "appear out of nowhere" because we have been waiting away from the bus stop (but in the bus area) for 2 or 3 buses to pass before we came up to board.

 

[Laurajean1014]

Relax.......................Breathe.........................your on vacation!

 

[jenjen212]

No flames here!! I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU!!! But . . . I think the people in the wheelchairs should wait in line like everyone else. When their turn comes to get on the bus, they should get on first, but shouldn't be allowed to CUT in front of others!!!

i am not flaming you - by any means, but i just wanted to make a comment here...

speaking from experience of having to be in a wheelchair for over a year because of a horrible car accident, and as a nurse, and as someone having a mother-in-law who is disabled and cannot get around with out one and assisting her...

they have to let those with wheelchairs on first... not every disney bus is "handicap accessible". so when one comes, they NEED to let the person in the wheelchair on first. i have been at the stops and couldn't get on a bus because it was not handicap accessible, and had to wait for one to eventually come along.

the area in the bus where they can strap a wheelchair in has chairs. so if they let others on the bus first and those people sit in those seats, they are going to have to kick those people out of those seats anyways in order to situate the disabled guest. if the disabled person waits his/her turn in line, by the time it is their turn the bus can be filled with people and will have to miss his/her turn anyways because there is no more room to situate a wheelchair on the bus.

i agree though that there are people who take advantage of the generosity of others and will rent a wheelchair just to be able to get in line first on rides, etc. this is not right. i hope that the people who do such things are never in a position in which they "have" to be in a wheelchair, it is a horrible feeling to have to depend on the courtesy and generosity of others in order to get around places or perform daily functions that others take for granted. after major surgeries and major physical therapy, fortunately, i am now able to walk on my own and do everything on my own. but that feeling has never left me. i always help out others when i see them, because i have been there and know what they are going through.